This invention relates to a compact, self-powered, selectively mountable lighting unit to provide lighting within a confined space to enable a user to operate a tool therein. More particularly, the invention relates to such a lighting unit formed to be mounted at a user""s option to a surgical instrument applied by the user to an operation site within a confined space inside a patient""s body so as to light a region at and about the operation site or, in the alternative, to be mounted to the patient""s tissue adjacent the operation site to light the same.
Adequate lighting of an operation site is of great importance for any surgical procedure. Currently, many such procedures, including, but not limited to, incision, suturing, clamping, cauterizing, irrigating, and various forms of tissue manipulation within a patient""s body, are often performed under overhead lighting of high intensity. In particular circumstances, this is not adequate, and surgeons sometimes utilize a light mounted to a harness worn on the head and intended to direct light forwards to facilitate viewing of the operation site where the surgeon is applying surgical instruments.
In certain kinds of surgery, e.g., urogynecological surgery, the surgeon has to operate deep within the patient""s pelvis, and neither overhead lighting nor a head-mounted light is satisfactory. The surgery typically involves operations performed through the patient""s vagina, and the provision of adequate light to the operation site is very difficult at all times, and particularly so if the patient is obese. In such surgery, the surgeon cannot even benefit from the assistance of a skilled helper, simply because all significant activity occurs within a confined space, where quick action based on clear viewing is very important to address eventualities, such as bleeding and related blood clot formations. Various devices have been suggested to date, but none are considered satisfactory. Known solutions to the general problem of lighting surgical sites include the following.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,029,487 to Kleine, titled xe2x80x9cIlluminated Cautery Electrode,xe2x80x9d teaches an illuminating device clamped to each of two-current bearing electrodes of a cautery instrument to be powered thereby. This invention was patented in 1934, and cautery instruments have changed significantly since then, besides which many surgical instruments are not electrically powered in any way.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,553,786 to Wilk, titled xe2x80x9cSurgical Lighting Method,xe2x80x9d teaches a remotely located light source coupled by an optical fiber to a flexible lighting unit mountable to a retractor or adhered to the skin of a patient. The presence of an electrical cable or optical fiber within the confines of a patient""s vagina is awkward and therefore undesirable during most urogynaecological surgical operations.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,990 to Wilder et al., titled xe2x80x9cSurgical Clip-on Light Pipe Illumination Assembly,xe2x80x9d teaches a remote light source from which light is conveyed via a flexible pipe clamped to a patient""s tissue and out of a xe2x80x9cdead softxe2x80x9d end bendable by the user to direct emitted light as desired. The presence of a light pipe of this kind is not acceptable in very confined spaces, for reasons discussed earlier.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,881,468 to Foltz, titled xe2x80x9cFlex Light,xe2x80x9d teaches a self-powered light-producing device from which light is emitted at the distal end of an elongate portion. The device may be of use in certain kinds of surgery, but is clearly intended to be held in a user""s hand, and is therefore not suitable for convenient lighting in confined spaces, where any impediments to a surgeon""s viewing and simultaneous freedom to operate are critical.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,028,694 to Schmidt, titled xe2x80x9cIllumination Device Using Pulse Width Modulation of a LED,xe2x80x9d addresses a related problem, namely, the provision of electromagnetic energy in the visible spectrum for lighting delicate tissues during lengthy surgical procedures. The suggested pulse-powering of the light emitting diode (LED) obviously has merits that may be acceptable if the associated costs and ease of operation are reasonable.
The problem addressed by the present invention is serious and is one of long standing, and the solution offered herein overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art affordably.
It is a principal object of this invention to provide a compact, self-powered, selectively mountable lighting unit to provide lighting within a confined space to enable a user to operate a tool therein.
Another object is to provide a surgeon with adequate lighting of an operation site within a confined space in a patient""s body with a compact, self-powered, selectively-mountable lighting unit that will provide light of selected focus for at least a predetermined duration.
A related object of this invention is to provide a tool having an operating distal end that is to be used within a confined space, where a user will require lighting at and about the distal end with a self-powered, compact lighting unit mounted to the tool itself within the confined space.
Another related object is to provide a method of providing lighting at an operation site within a confined space, to enable a user to operate the tool therein.
These and other related objects of this invention are realized by providing a compact, self-powered, lighting unit detachably mountable to any surgical tool at a location selected thereon by a user, to provide lighting within a confined space containing a surgical site to enable the user to operate the surgical tool thereat, comprising:
a housing containing a power source;
a switchable circuit;
a light-generating element powered by the power source via the circuit; and
a mounting mechanism attached to the housing, to enable the lighting unit to be mounted to the surgical tool at the selected location thereon to provide lighting at and about the surgical site.
In another aspect of the invention there is provided an improved surgical tool having an operating distal end that is to be used within a confined space where a user will require lighting at and about the distal end, comprising:
a self-powered lighting unit that is readily detachable from the surgical tool and is readily attachable instead to an anatomical site within the confined space at the user""s option.
In yet another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of providing lighting at an operation site within a confined space to enable a user to operate therein any surgical tool that is not specifically configured for mounting of a lighting unit, comprising the steps of:
providing a compact, self-powered lighting unit actuated to deliver light from one end; and
at the user""s option, mounting the lighting unit to the tool or to a location entirely in the confined space so as to enable the delivered light to illuminate a selected region within the confined space.